Statement Regarding Wish You Were Here: Franz Kafka

The Jewish Museum announces that Judith Butler has withdrawn from portraying Franz Kafka at the March 6th “Wish You Were Here: Franz Kafka” program. Judith Butler is a noted scholar and author who has lectured and written extensively on Franz Kafka. She was chosen on the basis of her expertise on the subject matter to be discussed. While her political views were not a factor in her participation, the debates about her politics have become a distraction making it impossible to present the conversation about Kafka as intended. Butler offers this comment: “I was very much looking forward to the discussion of Kafka in The Jewish Museum, and to affirm the value of Kafka’s literary work in that setting.”

The March 6th program “Wish You Were Here: Franz Kafka” will not take place.